Mixed Quinoa

Organic Tricolor Quinoa is native to South America, is a "pseudo-grain" - actually a gluten-free seed, but used in cooking like a whole grain. This amazing plant was domesticated thousands of years ago near Lake Titicaca, high on the plateaus of the Andes, and it was a mainstay in the diet of the ancient Incas. Tricolor quinoa is delicious on its own and in pilafs, soups and salads; the beautiful color elevates even the simplest dish. Our tricolor quinoa contains red, white and black quinoa and has been thoroughly rinsed and air dried to remove the naturally occurring bitter saponins.

It is easy to digest and can make a good diet for diabetics too for it contains a low glycemic index.

Harvesting

Quinoa grain is usually harvested by hand and rarely by machine, because the extreme variability of the maturity period of most Quinoa cultivars complicates mechanization. Harvest needs to be precisely timed to avoid high seed losses from shattering, and different panicles on the same plant mature at different times. The seed yield (often around 3 t/ha up to 5 t/ha) is comparable to wheat yields in the Andean areas. Dry seeds can be stored raw until washed or mechanically processed to remove the pericarp to eliminate the bitter layer containing saponins.